Like many other novice yogis, my yoga practice began as a quest to find a form of exercise to help me get in shape and most importantly to help me heal my chronic back pain. I had no idea that it was anything other than a gentle form of movement that was known for being very therapeutic for bodies in pain. The truth is, I had never entertained the idea of becoming a serious yogi, and I certainly had never even considered becoming a yoga teacher. I would never have predicted that years after doing my first chaturanga (modified, of course!) I would be writing a blog about how the kleshas affect my yoga practice!

The reality is that as a new yogi my practice was indeed influenced by something called the kleshas, as described in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. The kleshas include the five obstacles to reaching enlightenment: ignorance, egoism, attachment, hatred, and clinging to bodily life. Interestingly, I have witnessed all five of these obstacles at work not only in my life off the mat, but also in my practice on the mat.

Sri Swami Satchidananda explained that the precise order of the kleshas is significant in that the first one listed causes or influences the next one in line, and that pattern continues as you move through the list. For example, ignorance or not knowing the truth about who you really are is the first klesha on the list, and it is this ignorance of the self that causes egoism or a sense of I-ness (klesha two).   Similarly, it is because of our ego that we develop attachments or fear of loss (which is the third klesha). As we have to deal with losing things we are attached to, we can develop a sense of hatred toward others (klesha four). Finally, as we become attached to things and fear death of our lives and ourselves we cling to our bodies (klesha five), and we forget that we are not our body. Our body is merely the beautiful and miraculous shell that houses our spirit.  It is a part of us, but it isn’t who we are.

What started as a gentle form of exercise to ease some pain in my body, quickly became something that began to ease the other pain in my life.  Pain like worry, regret, and remorse.  Pain like loneliness, sorrow, and grief.  The type of invisible pain that we learn to stuff deep down inside us so we can hide the pieces of us that aren’t very pretty.  The type of pain, that when stuffed down, re-emerges as insomnia, back pain, or a variety of other diseases.